General Language Information:

According to omniglot.com,
“Gugu Yimithirr is a Pama-Nyungan language spoken mainly in Hopevale and Cooktown in Far North Queensland, the northern most part of the Australian state of Queensland. According to the 2016 census, there are about 780 speakers of Guugu Yimithirr. The majority of speakers are adults, but some younger people also speak the language. Efforts are being made by various community members and groups to revitalize the language. Other ways of writing the name of this language include Guugu Yimidhirr, Gugu Yimijir, Gugu-Yimidhirr, Guguyimidjir, Guugu Yimithirr, Koko Imudji and Kukuyimidi. The native name of the language, Guugu Yimithirr [ˈkuːku ˈjɪmɪt̪ɪr], means “having this speech”.

Guugu Yimithirr was first documented in 1770 by Lieutenant James Cook (later Captain Cook), Joseph Banks and Sydney Parkinson, and was the first Australian Aboriginal language to be written. They collected words in Guugu Yimithirr, including kangooroo / kanguru, which referred to a large black or grey kangaroo, and is usually written gangurru [ɡaŋuru].”

General Language Information:

Gumatj is a language spoken by approximately 500 speakers and is named after one of the sixteen tribes (or clans) that live in and around Yirrkala in north-east Arnhem Land, known collectively as Yolngu.

Some alternative names for this language are: Gomadj, Gumait, Gumaj. Many of the Yolngu in the region live in small communities located on the traditional homelands of their various clan groups.

Useful Links….

www.yolnguboy.com

www.livingknowledge.anu.edu.au

Some word examples :

Salt water crocodile — ‘Baru’
Non-Aboriginal person —’Balanda’
fire (generic) —’gurtha’
water (generic) —’gapu’

General Language Information:

Gupapuyŋu is spoken in North East Arnhem Land. The majority of the speakers historically lived in Milimgimbi although nowadays, they can be found in other places in and around Arnhem Land.

General Language Information:

Gurindji is a Pama–Nyungan language spoken by the Gurindji and Ngarinyman people in the Northern Territory, Australia. The language of the Gurindji is highly endangered, with about 592 speakers remaining and only 175 of those speakers fully understanding the language. (from Wikipedia)

General Language Information:

Gurr-goni, also spelled Guragone, Gorogone, Gun-Guragone, Gunagoragone, Gungorogone, Gurrogone, Gutjertabia, is an Australian Aboriginal language spoken in Arnhem Land. There were about 60 speakers in 2011, all trilingual in Burarra or Kuninjku. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gurr-Goni_language)

General Language Information:

Iwaidja, is an Australian Aboriginal language of the Iwaidja people with about 150 native, and an extra 20 to 30 L2 speakers in northernmost Australia. Historically having come from the base of the Cobourg Peninsula, it is now spoken on Croker Island. It is still being learnt by children within the Northern Territory. Some speakers are switching to English or Kuninjku.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iwaidja_language

General Language Information:

Kala Lagaw is the language of the Western & Central Torres Strait Islands between Papua New Guinea and the Australian mainland. There are approximately 1,200 speakers in the Torres Strait area with others having moved to the Queensland mainland, particularly to cities such as Townsville and Brisbane (2006 Census).
According to a project run by the Alliance for Linguistic Diversity on endangered languages Kala Lagaw is now potentially endangered as people younger than thirty living in the language area are more likely to speak Torres Strait Creole.
Kala Lagaw’s personal pronouns are typically Australian, most kin terms are Papuan, and significant sea and agricultural vocabulary is Austronesian. This linguistic complexity may be a result of the Austronesian trade and settlement in South-West Papua, Torres Strait and Cape York which both oral tradition and archaeological evidence indicate occurred. However studies suggest that while the Kala Lagaw language has undergone substantial external lexical and grammatical influence the core morphology is Australian and not pidgin or creole in origin.

General Language Information:

Kija (variously spelled Gija, Kitja, Gidja) is an Australian Aboriginal language today spoken by about 100 people, most of whom live in the region from Halls Creek to Kununurra and west to Lansdowne and Tableland Stations in Western Australia. It is a member of the Jarragan language family, a non-Pama-Nyungan family in the East Kimberleys. The Argyle Diamond Mine, on the south western corner of Lake Argyle is on the border of Kitja country. The Purnululu (pronounced as ‘Boornoolooloo’) Bungle Bungle National Park is mostly in Kitja country. From Wikipedia

General Language Information:

Kriol is an Australian creole language which developed through contact between indigenous groups and European settlers in the northern region of Australia. It is spoken by approximately 30,000 people. It was formally recognised as a distinct language in the 1970’s with its own unique structure and grammar.

It has been in use for almost a century, being taught throughout the generations. Whilst influenced by European languages, the structure and grammar is based on traditional aboriginal languages.

For many Kriol speakers it is not just a language but an important part of their identity. For many Aboriginal people, Kriol is a part of who they are, especially for those who no longer use a traditional language. It identifies them as being Aboriginal.

“I don’t understand English so when I read the Bible in Kriol, it helps me to understand it.” Julie Miller, Minyerri Community as quoted in AuSIL brochure “What is Kriol?”

Useful Links….

First Complete Bible translation in an indigenous language‘ (Religious Report)

Youtube channel

Something of value video  8 min     4 mins     Youth version

Activities for young people

Kriol dictionary

General Language Information:

Kukatja’s traditional lands cover roughly 11,900 square miles (31,000 km²), centering around Lake Gregory and running east as far as Balgo. The northern frontier lay about Billiluna, and the waters at Ngaimangaima, a boundary marker between their northern neighbours, the Dyaru, and the Ngardi to their east. They were present westwards on the Canning Stock Route, from Koninara (Godfrey Tank) to Marawuru (Well 40) (Wikepdia).

According to AIATSIS, Kukatja  is a variety of the Western Desert language in the north of Western Australia. In 1991 the language was spoken at Wirrumanu (formerly the Balgo Mission) and also at Yaka Yaka, Malarn (Lake Gregory), Billiluna, Kiwirrkura, Lamarnparnta, Ngarantjadu, Ngirrpi, Piparr and Walkarli. In 2011 Kukatja was spoken at Kunawarritji and Balgo.

Sources vary widely on the number of speakers – The 2004 NILS report – 1000, 2011 ABS Census – 521 and the Ethnologue – 130